


What haunts you at night

by PerriewinkleNerdie



Category: Open Heart (Visual Novel)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-24
Updated: 2019-09-24
Packaged: 2020-10-27 11:30:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,350
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20759651
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PerriewinkleNerdie/pseuds/PerriewinkleNerdie
Summary: His dreams make it impossible for him to sleep, unless she is there with him





	What haunts you at night

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, hello, hello!   
The fluff is here to save our hearts before the chapter drops and destroys us, one way or another.  
Enjoy! <3

It happened again. Sixth time this week.

The first two times Claire wasn’t there when it happened. He called her in the middle of the night, breathing heavily, unable to form a coherent thought or sentence. The only thing she understood was a short and pleading “_I need you._” before he ended the call.

She shot out of bed, pulled some clothes on and raced to his place.

He was in his bed when she arrived, sitting, wide awake and trembling. She sat down next to him and pulled him into a tight hug, offering him comfort.

Ethan laid back down, pulling her down with him and kissed her neck, muttering a quick ‘thank you’, before they both fell asleep.

It happened once again a day later. He called her and she ran, terrified, because he refused to tell her what was going on.

By the time day three rolled around, she decided to stay at his place, just to see what would happen.

Around two in the morning the screams started. She woke up immediately, looking over to his side of bed, only to find him trashing around, unable to wake up.

She pressed her hand to his side and his cheek, stilling his movement, careful not to hurt him. His eyes snapped open, a wild look in them, like a deer in headlights.

This time it was her who pulled him over to her, placing his head on her chest softly, wrapping her arms around her, not letting him get away, refusing to let him go through whatever was haunting him alone.

From this point forward, up until the end of the week, she would be staying with him every night. She couldn’t imagine what he was going through, but if it was enough to keep him awake, then she knew what she had to do, no other option has even crossed her mind.

She hated how alone he was for the majority of his life. From what she gathered, his relationship with his parents was never an easy one, nor was it one where he could seek comfort or support.

Then his relationship with Harper. She didn’t know exactly what happened, but she could feel that it wasn’t what Ethan wanted or needed.

What is more, she was convinced that he himself wasn’t aware of what he needed. That is, up until he met her. And she showed him what love could be. How the relationship should work. What the relationship should be giving him.

Claire felt helpless. She wanted to help him, she was desperate to find the source of his nightmares and help him fight them, but there was only so much she could do, if he refused to talk to her, like he was doing right now.

She asked him about it, time and time again. About what he was seeing when he closed his eyes at night, but he refused to tell her.

She asked him what she could do to help him, and each and every time she told him that her presence and love was enough. While she was flattered and happy that he felt that way, it still didn’t solve the problem.

When she woke up on day seven, in the middle of the night, he was screaming again, tears were falling down his cheeks, she finally broke.

He woke up minutes later, confused and tired, not sure what was happening. Then his ears picked up a soft sound, quiet one, like someone was trying to muffle their cries.

His head whipped to his side and he saw Claire, hugging her knees, crying quietly, breathing hard.

“Claire? What’s happening? What is going on?” he asked, concerned, but she shook her head, trying to make him let it go. “Hey. Talk to me.” He took her face into his hands, making her look at him.

She took a shaky breath, closing her eyes for a second before locking them with his.

“I can’t go on like this. It’s killing me, Ethan.”

“What do you mean?” words were broken when they fell from his lips. A quiet voice spoke in the back of his mind, telling him how she was tired of him and would leave him.

“I’m tired of feeling this helplessness. Every night I go to sleep, knowing that somewhere in the middle of it you will wake up, screaming and crying, and there is _nothing_ I can to do prevent that. And you won’t tell me what is going on, so I don’t even know what draws that reaction from you. You’ve always been there for me. And I want to be here for you too. But it’s difficult when you act like this. _What haunts you at night, Ethan?_ What makes you so terrified, what is going on in that beautiful head of yours that you’re not telling me? _Please, I’m begging you. Let me help you.”_

She was sobbing, looking straight into his eyes, unwaveringly and securely. He knew that she wouldn’t take no for an answer. And he wanted to tell her, wanted to get that burden out of him. He took a deep breath and started speaking.

“All my life I felt like I didn’t deserve things I had. I struggled with the idea of having someone there for me. I still do. I have trust issues because every time I open up to someone, let someone in, they either get hurt, leave me or die. And then you came along. You opened me up and took the place where the walls used to be. You are my shield, my protection. You could break my heart a thousand times. It was only ever yours to break. I trust you like no one else, with my life. And it _terrifies me._ I’ve never leaned onto anyone; I’ve always been alone. And now that I have you, I know that you are here… I’m scared of losing you. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if you left me. But the thing is, my mind cannot help but go to those dark places, where you are gone, and I’m alone again. I keep seeing you walking out the door, leaving me behind. Telling me you finally realized you deserve better. Watching you get hurt, over and over again. Holding you in my arms as the light in your eyes disappears. And there is nothing I can do to stop it. I don’t know how to deal with all of this.”

When he was done, he leaned on her, wrapping his arms around her midsection and hiding his face in her shoulder, crying quietly. And she cried with him. She knew that he felt alone before they met, but she had no idea he still carried those thoughts with him. She felt guilty, stupid.

“I’m an idiot.” She murmured into his hair. He held her closer, shaking his head.

“You’re not an idiot. I don’t want to hear you berate yourself like that again. Why would you even say that?”

“I should have noticed that you were feeling that way. I feel responsible…”

“Responsible for what? It’s not your fault that I am so insecure and unable to talk about my feelings.”

“I feel responsible, because you _chose me_. And I am supposed to be there for you, yet the second you need me, I fail. I’m sorry. I’ll do better. I want to do better. For you, and for me. For both of us.”

She pressed a soft kiss to his eyes, his nose, his cheeks. Leaning back to look at him, then back in to kiss away his tears tenderly. And then, delicately and carefully, she kissed his lips, soft from all the crying.

“You’ll never feel alone with me by your side.” She muttered against his lips, her eyes half open, kissing him again before laying back down.

Ethan looked at her with amazements in his eyes. How he got so lucky to get her was beyond him, but he was the happiest man alive, knowing that he loved her and she loved him.


End file.
